With the coronavirus stats going in the right direction, all of us at C&G Newspapers look forward to resuming publication of the St. Clair Shores Sentinel and Birmingham-Bloomfield Eagle on May 27th. All other C&G newspapers will begin publishing on June 10th (Advertiser-Times on June 24th). In the meantime, continue to find local news on our website and look for us on Facebook and Twitter.

Attention Readers: Find Us in Your Mailbox Soon

With the coronavirus stats going in the right direction, all of us at C&G Newspapers look forward to resuming publication of the St. Clair Shores Sentinel and Birmingham-Bloomfield Eagle on May 27th. All other C&G newspapers will begin publishing on June 10th (Advertiser-Times on June 24th). In the meantime, continue to find local news on our website and look for us on Facebook and Twitter.

Three firefighters and two police officers were recently hired by Eastpointe, and three of them were sworn in at a ceremony on March 19. Pictured, from left, are Deputy Fire Chief Nick Sage, probationary firefighter Jake Ruth, Director of Public Safety George Rouhib, police officer Melanie Beam, police officer Brian Thome, and Deputy Police Chief Eric Keiser.

Eastpointe Fire Department back to full staff

EASTPOINTE — The Eastpointe Fire Department is operating at full capacity for the first time since 2016.

Three members joined the department in March, allowing it to operate three full shifts every day. The new firefighter/paramedics are Matt Sahr, Mike Adamo and Jake Ruth.

“Over the past number of years, as we’ve faced several retirements, it’s been a challenge for us to quickly recruit and hire firefighters,” said Eastpointe Deputy Fire Chief Nick Sage. “We are grateful that our civil service made a change to shorten the lengthy hiring process, and that has resulted in us finally getting to full staff. We’ve brought on three new firefighters this year, and that brings us up to three shifts of seven, which is our full complement as budgeted.”

City officials said they were glad they were able to help the Fire Department return to full strength.

“We are very excited that, for the first time in memory, that we finally have a fully staffed Fire Department,” said Eastpointe City Manager Joseph Sobota. “The city used various methods to recruit applicants for the position, including social media.”

The Eastpointe Fire Department had the budget for the additional staff, but the process required to interview and hire firefighters required far more time to bring more people on.

“They were always budgeted because the (South Macomb Oakland Regional Services Authority) millage from 2014 made it possible. It’s a 20-year millage for fire and police. The issue was more about getting people hired in a timely manner,” said Sage. “With a full complement, it helps spread out the workload and helps ensure we bring enough firefighters to a scene at any given time.”